Press Release

Learning Disability Coalition highlights further cost pressures on councils

27the November 2008

As senior decision makers come together at Learning Disability Today the Learning Disability Coalition is calling for sufficient funding to be made available to local authorities as they take over NHS responsibility for social care next April. Already budget constraints have seen three-quarters of local authorities rationing the services that they provide to people with learning disabilities across the country and the Coalition is concerned that difficulties in identifying the correct amount of money to be transferred will lead to further funding issues.

Speaking at a Learning Disability Today expert seminar on the transfer of commissioning responsibilities from the NHS to local councils, Rob Greig, Chief Executive of the National Development Team said:

"There are three key things to get right in this transfer. Firstly, it must also cover 'hidden' costs and budgets, like a fair share of NHS training budgets. Secondly, it needs to encompass a Primary Care Trust commitment to invest in general healthcare in response to Sir Jonathan Michael's recent report on health inequalities experienced by people with learning disabilities. Finally, local authorities should see their new responsibilities as an opportunity for a strategic shift towards more person centred services - covering both the services they have inherited and their existing commissioning and provision."

Su Sayer OBE, Chief Executive of United Response, and Board Member of the Learning Disability Coalition said:
"The transfer of responsibilities presents us with a challenge. It also offers a real opportunity to provide what people with learning disabilities need and want: the chance to get a life, not just a service. But for everyone to get the most out of community living, it is vital that adequate resources are made available to local authorities, and alongside this we must build capacity in communities in ways that complement professional social care support in meeting people's needs."